Internet buys spur ID-theft charges

4 students accused in credit-card scam

February 17, 2006|By Tonya Maxwell, Tribune staff reporter

A catalog for adult novelty items that landed in the mailbox of a Will County senior citizen led to an identity fraud investigation and the arrests of four Joliet Junior College students, sheriff's police said Thursday.

"They were using stolen credit card numbers to order everything online from airline tickets to electronics," said Pat Barry, sheriff's spokesman.

The situation became apparent when the catalog arrived at the home of a 74-year-old Will County man a few weeks ago, he said.

"Naturally, when you're 74 and you've been married to your wife for about 50 years, and she starts noticing that you're getting these things, you can get in trouble," Barry said.

The man checked his credit card bill and found online purchases he never made. He called police.

Investigators traced the Internet protocol numbers from the purchases to two dormitories at Joliet Junior College, 1540 and 1541 Centennial, Barry said.

Horton also was charged with receiving stolen goods, and Neely was charged with using a stolen credit card, identity theft and computer fraud. Scott and Garmon were each charged with receiving stolen goods, identity theft and computer fraud.

Investigators seized computers and are checking files, but Barry said police believe the fraud has been ongoing for months and involves numerous victims.

"There's a common thread," Barry said of the defendants. "They were getting a lot of credit card numbers from places where they worked or friends worked," such as restaurants and gas stations.

Barry declined to name the establishments, but said he believes credit card numbers were taken from victims in both Will and Cook Counties.

The suspects allegedly were using stolen credit card numbers to apply for new credit cards and typically would only use a card once or twice.

"When victims look at a credit card and see $300 to $400 in purchases, they call their credit card company," Barry said. "The company issues a new credit card, covers the purchases and police might not even find out."

Illinois ranks 10th in the nation for identity theft-related complaints, and the Chicago-Naperville-Joliet region ranks in the top 20 metropolitan areas for similar crimes, according to a report released last month by the Federal Trade Commission.

The metro area sees 102 consumer complaints for every 100,000 people, ahead of New York and Detroit.

The Illinois attorney general's office opened an identity theft hot line on Feb. 6 and 650 calls already have been logged, said spokeswoman Melissa Merz. Callers should alert local police to possible fraud, she said, but hot-line staffers can help victims navigate steps such as alerting banks and credit card companies to stolen identification.

The hot-line number is 866-999-5630. For the hearing-impaired, the TTY number is 877-844-5461.